With a deep breath and a smile, Jabari Parker held up a blue T-shirt with a bright, white “D” on it. All around the Simeon Career Academy gym on the South Side here, cameras flashed and TV cameras rolled as the country learned that Parker would play college basketball at Duke.

Jabari Parker, who led Simeon to three straight state titles, abides by Mormon customs and included B.Y.U. on his final list of colleges.

Parker’s decision Thursday was a national sports news event, the latest testament to a celebrity rooted in both his skill — he has been considered one of the top players in the nation since his sophomore year — and his Mormon faith.

Parker, a 6-foot-8 senior, has led Simeon to three consecutive Illinois state championships, has dazzled on A.A.U. courts across the country and was coveted by college coaches. His exceptional post moves and jump shot are perhaps exceeded by his biography: an African-American follower of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in urban Chicago.

Parker was featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated this spring, billed as “the best high school basketball player since LeBron James.” The article was accompanied by questions of whether he would serve the church on a mission upon graduation. He said Thursday that he would not but might later in life.

His increasing fame stands in contrast to his unassuming presence off the court, where he comes across as a regular young man remarkably adept at handling the spotlight.

“Everybody knows I hate attention,” Parker said at the news conference. “I almost had to do it this way. It wasn’t a choice for me. A lot of people wanted to know, and it would be selfish for me not to.”

He also spoke repeatedly about the importance of going to Duke for an education.

“I like being around kids, teaching people, so secondary education could be one of those things,” Parker said when asked what he might major in. “I like animals, so biology could be a factor.”

Parker’s mother, Lola, was born in Tonga and raised as a Mormon in Utah. His father, Sonny, enjoyed a six-year N.B.A. career with the Golden State Warriors in the late 1970s and early ’80s.

Jabari Parker abides by Mormon customs. He does not smoke or drink alcohol. Church services trump his basketball schedule, and he regularly attends Bible study classes before school.

“Jabari’s faith defines who he is,” Lola Parker said. “Character is everything to our family because when you have faith in something other than yourself, then you become humble. He understands there is a responsibility that comes with all this.”

Jabari Parker included Brigham Young on his final list of colleges, and his official visit there last month created a frenzy. Students printed thousands of T-shirts with the slogan “From Chicago to Provo” and produced an Internet video that went viral. It was not enough.

“It’s just Coach K,” Parker said, referring to Mike Krzyzewski, Duke’s longtime coach. “He’s one of the best coaches ever, and I want to be able to experience the things he has.”

At Simeon, which the former No. 1 draft pick Derrick Rose also attended, Coach Robert Smith has called Parker the best player he has ever coached.

“Jabari can be great, a five- or six-year All-Star player, and make the Hall of Fame,” Smith said. “Everyone wants me to determine who’s the best between him and Derrick. They are both humble, mild-mannered, and love their families. The things you look for in a kid, they have it.”

Still, Parker’s seemingly smooth life has hit some bumps this year. Playing for the United States team in the FIBA U-17 World Championships in Lithuania this summer, Parker fractured a bone in his right foot. He tried to come back too soon for Simeon’s season, aggravated the injury and will now most likely be sidelined for the rest of December.

That did not scare off college recruiters, or stop him from being among the most sought-after recruits in the country.

After Thursday’s news conference, Simeon got back to practice. Parker watched from the sideline, resting his foot, before leaving with his mother and father.

“This took off a lot of weight on me,” Parker said. “It got me away from all the sharks — the media, all of that. Any little spec on Twitter or any site could blow up the world, so I just wanted to get it done.”

Mia Love had only two minutes to speak yesterday. Her time slot was during the 7p hour when most delegates are still milling around the hall and not paying much attention. But she managed to do what many of the later bigger name speakers failed to do: energize the hall and bring the delegates to their feet.

That’s why there’s a lot of talk about Mia Love today. She is the African American (and Mormon) Mayor of Saratoga Springs, Utah. And she has a good shot of becoming the first black woman Republican elected to Congress if she can beat Utah Democrat Rep. Jim Matheson.

Her speech last night focused on the American Dream attained by her parents, who emigrated from Haiti with “ten dollars in their pocket.”

President Obama’s version of America is a divided one — pitting us against each other based on our income level, gender, and social status. His policies have failed! We are not better off than we were 4 years ago, and no rhetoric, bumper sticker, or campaign ad can change that.

Mr. President I am here to tell you we are not buying what you are selling in 2012.

The American Dream is our story. It is a story of human struggle, standing up and striving for more. It’s been told for over 200 years with small steps and giant leaps; from a woman on a bus to a man with a dream; and the bravery of the greatest generation, to the entrepreneurs of today.

A 17-year-old Mormon was an unlikely selection as a guest speaker for a Catholic school’s eighth-grade commencement ceremony, but students and parents at St. Sabina Academy in the Auburn Gresham neighborhood said the choice was a slam dunk.

Jabari Parker is Chicago’s latest shining star of high school basketball, having been pictured last month on the cover of Sports Illustrated, which called him “the best high school player since LeBron James.”

The Rev. Michael Pflegersaid Parker was not chosen because he’s a star athlete, but “because he’s a star person.”

“His faith in God is not some extracurricular activity,” Pfleger said. “His faith in God is a foundation on which he stands and the rock in which he lives his life.”

Parker, son of former NBA player Sonny Parker, also carries a 3.7 grade point average at Simeon Career Academy and attends Bible study three times a week at 5:30 a.m., Pfleger said.

“I think he represents a real role model of what young people can look up today,” Pfleger said when introducing Parker at commencement Sunday afternoon.

Parents and students alike said they saw Parker as a role model of a successful student who avoided negative influences and centered himself with his religion.

In his brief remarks, Parker never specifically mentioned Mormonism, but he quoted a Bible passage to describe how he handles pressure. He also repeatedly stressed to the 40 graduating eighth-graders the need to avoid negative influences as they prepare to enter high school.

“Just stay true to yourself. Nobody can get you to do what you don’t want to do if you’re strong enough,” Parker said. “When people try to peer pressure you, just leave. Just run away. That’s the best thing to do.”

Partly reading from his smartphone and partly ad-libbing his remarks, Parker also encouraged the students to cherish their education.

“If you lean on your books and your education, it will take you so much farther than basketball. Basketball is going to be short,” he told them. “It’s seldom that many people end up in good situations after their career has passed if they don’t have an education.”

Andre Raiford, one of the graduating St. Sabina eighth-graders, said Parker’s talk was meaningful. “It was for us to follow our dreams and not let other people change who we are,” Raiford said.

Tevon West is a seventh-grader at St. Sabina this year and was handing out commencement programs before the ceremony began. He said he would be more likely to follow the basketball star’s wisdom that an adult’s because they have more in common as teenagers.

“He’s doing good right now,” West said. “That means something good is going on in his life, so I’d follow whatever advice he’s giving.”

Lafayette Cox, whose granddaughter Chyna Moore was graduating Sunday, said Parker is an example of how to navigate high school amid an often challenging environment on Chicago’s South Side.

“You have your right choices, and you have your wrong choices. I’m quite sure he made the right choices,” Cox said. “And it is hard — even harder than when I was coming up.”